The present invention relates generally to insulated hand grips for cooking utensil handles and more particularly to replaceable hand grips made of a resilient rubber-like material of low thermal conductivity which may be easily placed and removed about closed loop utensil handles.
The problem of inadvertently grasping the hot handle of pots, pans and other cooking utensils has been with us for nearly as long as the art of cooking itself. In the domestic cooking environment where the use of cooking vessels is relatively infrequent and not for extended periods of time, the use of a common hotpad or oven mitt is a commonly employed solution, as is the forming of handles on the cooking vessels, with a molded plastic or wooden grip portion which grip portion is either molded or riveted to the handle with the handle in turn being typically welded or riveted to the vessel in question. Such fixed insulated grips are sometimes adequate for domestic cooking purposes but are frequently not adequate in the case of commercial cookware where frequent and prolonged use, as well as washing at high temperatures to sterilize the utensil, may cause the wooden or plastic handles to deteriorate rapidly and fail long before the remaining portion of the utensil is worn out. For this reason, commercial cookware is generally provided with a simple metal handle which is either riveted or welded to the main portion of the vessel.
For handles of the simple elongated variety, a satisfactory removable insulated handle is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,611, assigned to the assignee of the present invention. The solution embodied in this patent is not, however, satisfactory for handles of the closed loop variety as frequently found on opposing sides of larger cooking vessels, for example of the stockpot type. Similar closed loop handles are frequently encountered on lids for larger commercial cookware. The provision of an easily removable closed loop handle heat insulating cover would be highly desirable, particularly in the area of commercial cookware.